Formulas containing alginates are known in the prior art, as exemplified by GB 1,036,497 to Schwarzkopf. The Schwarzkopf compositions are primarily aqueous systems containing an alginate. Although a hair setting effect is obtained when such compositions are applied to hair and dried, the form of these prior art compositions makes them difficult and inconvenient to apply to the head. Thus, Schwarzkopf first prepares a first composition containing the alginate which has an acidic pH above 3.6. To use the composition, it is essential that the pH of the first composition be lowered to below 3.6, to cause precipitation of the alginate. The pH may be lowered in two ways. First, an acidic solution may be applied to the hair after application of the hair setting composition. Alternately, the pH of the first composition may be lowered to below 3.6 just prior to setting the hair by adding a dilute acid solution to the first composition.
Disadvantageously, Schwarzkopf's procedure requires a two-step operation because the complete hair setting composition comprising the mixture of the first composition and the acidifying solution is inherently unstable. Necessarily, the product of Schwarzkopf would be provided in kit form comprising the first composition and the acidifying solution. Use of the product entails careful measurement of each part to obtain the right proportions of ingredients, use preferably being performed by the trained personnel of a hair styling salon. Thus, the Schwarzkopf product is greatly limited in its ease of use.
GB 1,017,843 also to Schwarzkopf discloses a hair-fixing composition containing a modified gelatine as the setting agent, in lieu of the conventional film-forming agents such as shellac, alginates, carragenates, gelatine, dextrins, polyvinyl pyrrolidone or copolymers thereof with polyvinyl acetate, dimethyl hydantoin, formaldehyde resins and polymeric acrylic acid derivatives.
As indicated above, the use of alginates in hair setting compositions has not been exploited commercially because such compositions are not particularly stable. This would be especially true with ready-to-use compositions sold over the counter to retail customers. Thus, the alginate tends to precipitate from the ready-to-use compositions, requiring the use of a kit-type product as disclosed in Schwarzkopf '497.
More recently, hair setting compositions have taken the form of hair sprays that utilize synthetic polymers as the active ingredient. These compositions are generally prepared using alcohols as the principal vehicle. However, alginates, being intolerant to alcohols present at high concentrations, have not been used in such hairspray compositions. Accordingly, an aqueous vehicle or a hydroalcoholic vehicle having a low alcohol concentration must be employed in alginate hair setting compositions.
The problem of alginate instability is of greater concern in hair spray products, typically aerosol sprays, but also pump sprays. This is because alginate, if precipitated, clogs the valve of the spray nozzle. As a further disadvantage, when applied to hair, the alginate hair setting agent present in hair setting compositions tends to flake off. As a result, the consumer has the appearance of having dandruff.
Surprisingly, it has now been found that both the flaking problem and the stability problem can be largely alleviated by incorporating a polymer material having at least one carboxylic acid moiety into the hair setting composition.